2015 Texas A&M Aggies football team

2015 Texas A&M Aggies football
Music City Bowl vs. Louisville, L 21–27
Conference	Southeastern Conference Western Division
2015 record	8–5 (4–4 SEC)
Head coach	Kevin Sumlin (4th year)
Offensive coordinator	Jake Spavital (3rd year)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	John Chavis (1st year)
Base defense	Multiple 4–3
Home stadium	Kyle Field (Capacity: 102,733)

2015 SEC football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
#25 Florida x		7	–	1					10	–	4
#22 Tennessee		5	–	3					9	–	4
Georgia		5	–	3					10	–	3
Vanderbilt		2	–	6					4	–	8
Kentucky		2	–	6					5	–	7
Missouri		1	–	7					5	–	7
South Carolina		1	–	7					3	–	9
West Division
#1 Alabama x$#^		7	–	1					14	–	1
#10 Ole Miss		6	–	2					10	–	3
Arkansas		5	–	3					8	–	5
#16 LSU		5	–	3					9	–	3
Texas A&M		4	–	4					8	–	5
Mississippi State		4	–	4					9	–	4
Auburn		2	–	6					7	–	6
Championship: Alabama 29, Florida 15
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions As of January 12, 2016; Rankings from AP Poll

The 2015 Texas A&M Aggies football team represented Texas A&M University in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They played their home games at the newly renovated Kyle Field. They were members of the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference. They were led by fourth year head coach Kevin Sumlin. The Aggies finished the regular season 8–5 overall and 4–4 in SEC play. They were invited to the Music City Bowl, where they were defeated by the Louisville Cardinals, 21–27.

Preseason

Recruiting class

In the 2015 recruiting class, Texas A&M signed 25 players, 11 of which were included in the ESPN 300 and 12 in the Scout 300. The class was ranked 12th in the nation by ESPN,^[1] 10th by Rivals,^[2] 12th by 247,^[3] and 10th by Scout. ^[4]

2015 recruits
Name	Home town	High school / college	Height	Weight	40^‡	Commit date
Jay Bradford RB	Splendora, TX	Splendora HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	4.36	Aug 22, 2013
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kendall Bussey RB	New Orleans, LA	Isidore Newman HS	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	202 lb (92 kg)	4.42	Feb 2, 2015
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Deshawn Capers-Smith CB	New Orleans, LA	Warren Easton HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	5.09	Feb 23, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Jordan Davis TE	Houston TX	Clear Lake HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	–	Jun 25, 2013
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Justin Dunning S	Whitehouse, TX	Whitehouse HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	201 lb (91 kg)	4.53	Nov 10, 2013
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Landis Durham LB	Plano, TX	Plano East HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	221 lb (100 kg)	4.69	Jun 15, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Roney Elam CB	Newton, TX	Newton HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	–	Aug 15, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Trevor Elbert OL	Heath, TX	Rockwall-Heath HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	292 lb (132 kg)	5.02	Jan 26, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Justin Evans S	Wiggins, MS	Mississippi Gulf Coast CC	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	4.50	May 1, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Riley Garner LB	College Station, TX	A&M Consolidated HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	216 lb (98 kg)	4.66	May 21, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Claude George LB	Lafayette, LA	Hutchinson CC	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	233 lb (106 kg)	4.70	Oct 30, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kingsley Keke DT	Richmond, TX	George Ranch HS	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	5.06	Jun 4, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Christian Kirk WR	Scottsdale, AZ	Saguaro HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	192 lb (87 kg)	4.48	Dec 17, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Daniel Lacamera K	Tarpon Springs, FL	East Lake HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	–	Jun 24, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Connor Lanfear OL	Buda, TX	Hays HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	278 lb (126 kg)	–	Feb 28, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
James Lockhart DE	Ennis, TX	Ennis HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	4.70	Jul 25, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Daylon Mack DT	Gladewater, TX	Glade Water HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	328 lb (149 kg)	4.96	Feb 4, 2015
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Erik McCoy OL	Lufkin, TX	Lufkin HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	307 lb (139 kg)	5.11	Nov 18, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Richard Moore LB	Cedar Hill, TX	Cedar Hill HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	209 lb (95 kg)	4.80	Jan 2, 2015
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kyler Murray QB	Allen, TX	Allen HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	177 lb (80 kg)	4.5	May 28, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Larry Pryor S	Sulphur Springs, TX	Sulphur Springs HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	197 lb (89 kg)	4.66	Jan 30, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Damion Ratley WR	Yoakum, TX	Blinn CC	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	4.47	Nov 28, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kemah Siverand WR	Houston, TX	Cypress Ridge HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	188 lb (85 kg)	4.47	May 29, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Keaton Sutherland OL	Flower Mound, TX	Marcus HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	282 lb (128 kg)	5.0	Jun 16, 2014
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Dwaine Thomas LB	Boutte, LA	Hahnville HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	209 lb (95 kg)	4.60	Jan 17, 2015
	Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 10   Rivals: 10  247Sports: 12  ESPN: 12
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Texas A&M Football Commitment List 2015". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015. "Texas A&M College Football Recruiting Commits 2015". Scout.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015. "Texas A&M Aggies Commits 2015". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015. "2015 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 4, 2015.

Personnel

Full roster

2015 Texas A&M Aggies football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 1 Murray, KylerKyler Murray Fr WR 2 Noil, SpeedySpeedy Noil So WR 3 Kirk, ChristianChristian Kirk Fr WR 4 Ratley, DamionDamion Ratley So RB 5 Carson, TraTra Carson  Sr QB 7 Hubenak, JakeJake Hubenak  So WR 9 Seals-Jones, RickyRicky Seals-Jones  So QB 10 Allen, KyleKyle Allen So WR 11 Reynolds, JoshJosh Reynolds Jr WR 13 Jeffery, JamalJamal Jeffery So QB 14 McQueen, ConnerConner McQueen  Jr WR 15 Iheanacho, FrankFrank Iheanacho So QB 16 Miller, KobeKobe Miller  Fr WR 16 Siverand, KemahKemah Siverand Fr QB 17 Traylor, JordanJordan Traylor Jr WR 18 Pope, EdwardEdward Pope  Jr QB 19 Moore, JansonJanson Moore  So WR 19 Tabuyo, JeremyJeremy Tabuyo Jr RB 20 White, JamesJames White  So RB 21 Ford, KeithKeith Ford (I) Jr RB 22 Etwi, KwameKwame Etwi Fr WR 23 Holmes, SabianSabian Holmes Sr RB 25 Bussey, KendallKendall Bussey Fr RB 27 Dolezal, BriceBrice Dolezal Sr RB 29 Bradford, JayJay Bradford Fr RB 34 Townsend, BlaineBlaine Townsend Sr FB 39 English, AustinAustin English So TE 41 Alexander, BrandonBrandon Alexander  Sr WR 42 Motley, JoschJosch Motley  So TE 47 Smith, CadenCaden Smith  Sr WR 48 Patterson, DreaganDreagan Patterson Jr OL 50 Davis, TankTank Davis  Fr OL 56 Matthews, MikeMike Matthews (C) Sr OL 61 Meador, BradenBraden Meador  Jr OL 62 Loitz, ChadChad Loitz  So OL 63 Lindblade, RyanRyan Lindblade Jr OL 64 McCoy, ErikErik McCoy Fr OL 65 Gennesy, AveryAvery Gennesy  Jr OL 66 Kellman, NathanNathan Kellman OL 67 Beakey, DrewDrew Beakey Fr OL 68 Dworaczyk, JustinJustin Dworaczyk Fr OL 69 Talbert, BraydenBrayden Talbert Fr OL 70 Lanfear, ConnorConnor Lanfear Fr OL 71 Elbert, TrevorTrevor Elbert Fr OL 72 Eluemunor, JermaineJermaine Eluemunor  Jr OL 73 Stuckey, JeremiahJeremiah Stuckey  Jr OL 74 Ifedi, GermainGermain Ifedi (C)  Jr OL 75 Martin, KodaKoda Martin  Fr OL 77 Gustafson, J.J.J.J. Gustafson So OL 78 Sutherland, KeatonKeaton Sutherland Fr OL 79 Cheek, JosephJoseph Cheek  Sr WR 81 Judkins, JalynJalyn Judkins  So WR 82 Niederhofer, BooneBoone Niederhofer  Jr WR 83 Whitley, KyleKyle Whitley  Fr WR 84 Whatley, MorganMorgan Whatley Fr TE 85 Gustafson, GrantGrant Gustafson Fr WR 85 Rusk, ReggieReggie Rusk Fr TE 87 Shetler, GreerGreer Shetler Fr WR 88 Reeves, BryceBryce Reeves  Fr TE 89 Davis, JordanJordan Davis Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DB 1 Harris, De'VanteDe'Vante Harris Sr DB 4 Ellis, NoelNoel Ellis Jr DL 5 Mack, DaylonDaylon Mack Fr DB 6 Wilson, DonovanDonovan Wilson So LB 7 Moore, RichardRichard Moore Fr DB 8 Harvey, NickNick Harvey So DL 9 Cunningham, QualenQualen Cunningham So DL 10 Hall, DaeshonDaeshon Hall Jr LB 11 Walker, JoshJosh Walker So DB 12 Moeller, SamSam Moeller (C)  Sr LB 13 Chevis, ReggieReggie Chevis  So DB 14 Evans, JustinJustin Evans Jr DL 15 Garrett, MylesMyles Garrett (C) So LB 16 Thomas, DwaineDwaine Thomas Fr DB 17 Sezer Jr., AlexAlex Sezer Jr. Jr DB 18 Pryor, LarryLarry Pryor Fr DB 19 Capers-Smith, DeShawnDeShawn Capers-Smith Fr DB 21 Williams, BrandonBrandon Williams (C)  Sr DB 23 Watts, ArmaniArmani Watts So DB 25 Willis, PriestPriest Willis (I) Jr DB 26 Burns, DevontaDevonta Burns  Sr DB 27 Elam, RoneyRoney Elam Fr DB 28 Davis, VictorVictor Davis  So DB 30 Dunning, JustinJustin Dunning Fr LB 31 George, ClaudeClaude George Jr DB 32 Paulhill, WillWill Paulhill  Jr LB 32 Wilson, KevinKevin Wilson  Sr LB 33 Washington, ShaanShaan Washington Jr LB 35 Garner, RileyRiley Garner Fr DL 40 Johnson, JarrettJarrett Johnson So LB 42 Alaka, OtaroOtaro Alaka So LB 45 Gillaspia, CullenCullen Gillaspia So LB 46 Hilliard, A.J.A.J. Hilliard  Jr LB 48 Durham, LandisLandis Durham Fr LB 49 Martinez, TaylorTaylor Martinez  Jr LB 50 Labhart, MacMac Labhart  Fr LB 52 Horton, TristanTristan Horton Fr DL 53 Huskinson, BenBen Huskinson So LB 54 Blount, JakeJake Blount  Jr DL 55 Manning, JustinJustin Manning  So DL 59 Flores, IsaacIsaac Flores Jr DL 83 Williams, AlonzoAlonzo Williams Sr DL 86 Darley, DavidDavid Darley So DL 88 Keke, KingsleyKingsley Keke Fr DL 90 Washington, DeshawnDeshawn Washington  Fr DL 92 Henderson, ZaycovenZaycoven Henderson So DL 94 Schorp, TannerTanner Schorp  So DL 95 Obioha, JulienJulien Obioha Sr DL 98 Walker, HardreckHardreck Walker Jr DL 99 Lockhart, JamesJames Lockhart Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK 24 Bertolet, TaylorTaylor Bertolet  Sr PK/P 36 LaCamera, DanielDaniel LaCamera Fr P 38 Kaser, DrewDrew Kaser Sr DS 40 Robertson, ChristianChristian Robertson  Fr PK 41 Grady, PeterPeter Grady Jr DS 45 Frey, AustinAustin Frey  Fr P 46 Tripucka, ShaneShane Tripucka  So	Head coach Kevin Sumlin (4th season) Coordinators/assistant coaches Jeff Banks – Special Teams Coordinator/Tight Ends John Chavis  – Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Dave Christensen – Offensive Line/Running Game Coordinator Mark Hagen – Defensive Tackles Mikado Hinson – Director of Player Development Larry Jackson – Director of Football Sports Performance Scott Johnston – Director of Recruiting Terry Joseph – Secondary Clarence McKinney – Running Backs Justin Moore – Associate Athletic Director Aaron Moorehead – Wide Receivers Terry Price – Defensive Ends Gary Reynolds – Director of Football Operations Jake Spavital – Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: August 26, 2015

Schedule

Texas A&M announced their 2015 football schedule on October 14, 2014. The 2015 schedule consist of 9 games in the state of Texas and 3 games outside of the state in the regular season. Two of the nine games in Texas are neutral games against Arizona State and Arkansas. Texas A&M will host SEC foes Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi State, and South Carolina, and will travel to LSU, Ole Miss, and Vanderbilt.^[5]

This will be the Aggies' first year without Missouri since 2009 and SMU since 2010 on their schedule.

The Aggies' 25-0 shutout of Vanderbilt on November 21 was Texas A&M's first shutout victory since joining the SEC in 2012. The Aggies had not shut out a team since a 31-0 victory over Wyoming on September 11, 2004, and had not shut out a conference opponent since a 41-0 victory over Baylor on October 12, 2002.

Date	Time	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 5	6:00 p.m.	vs. #15 Arizona State*		NRG Stadium • Houston, TX (Texas Kickoff)	ESPN	W 38-17	66,308
September 12	6:00 p.m.	Ball State*	#16	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	ESPNU	W 56-23	104,213
September 19	11:00 a.m.	Nevada*	#17	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	SECN	W 44–27	102,591
September 26	6:00 p.m.	vs. Arkansas	#14	AT&T Stadium • Arlington, TX (Rivalry)	ESPN	W 28–21 ^OT	67,339
October 3	6:30 p.m.	#21 Mississippi State	#14	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	SECN	W 30–17	104,455
October 17	2:30 p.m.	#10 Alabama	#9	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	CBS	L 23–41	105,733
October 24	6:00 p.m.	at #24 Ole Miss	#15	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS	ESPN	L 3–23	60,674
October 31	11:00 a.m.	South Carolina		Kyle Field • College Station, TX	SECN	W 35–28	102,154
November 7	6:30 p.m.	Auburn	#25	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	SECN	L 10–26	104,625
November 14	6:00 p.m.	Western Carolina*		Kyle Field • College Station, TX	ESPNU	W 41–17	101,583
November 21	6:30 p.m.	at Vanderbilt		Vanderbilt Stadium • Nashville, TN	SECN	W 25–0	32,482
November 28	6:30 p.m.	at LSU		Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, LA (Rivalry)	SECN	L 7–19	101,803
December 30	6:00 p.m.	vs. Louisville*		Nissan Stadium • Nashville, TN (Music City Bowl)	ESPN	L 21–27	50,478
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. ^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Central Time.

Schedule Source:^[6]

Game notes

#15 Arizona State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#15 Sun Devils	7	10	0	6	23
Aggies	7	0	10	3	20

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
First meeting

Ball State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	0	0	10	0	10
#16 Aggies	6	3	13	7	29

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
First meeting

The game was the home opener for A&M, and the first game in the newly-renovated Kyle Field. The Aggies were dominant throughout the entire first half, with the exception being Ball State's first drive to A&M's 4 yard line.^[7]

Nevada

	1	2	3	4	Total
Wolfpack	7	3	10	7	27
#17 Aggies	14	10	14	6	44

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
1–0	1950	TAMU, 48–18

Arkansas

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
#14 Aggies	0	10	3	8	7	28
Razorbacks	7	0	7	7	0	21

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
27–41–3	2014	TAMU, 35–28

#21 Mississippi State

	1	2	3	4	Total
#21 Bulldogs	3	7	0	7	17
#14 Aggies	14	10	3	3	30

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
4–4	2014	MSU, 48–31

#10 Alabama

	1	2	3	4	Total
#10 Crimson Tide	14	14	3	10	41
#9 Aggies	3	10	7	3	23

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
2–5	2014	BAMA, 59–0

#24 Ole Miss

	1	2	3	4	Total
#15 Aggies	0	3	0	0	3
#24 Rebels	7	9	7	0	23

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
6–1	2014	Miss, 35–20

South Carolina

	1	2	3	4	Total
Gamecocks	7	14	7	0	28
Aggies	7	14	14	0	35

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
1–0	2014	TAMU, 52–28

Auburn

	1	2	3	4	Total
Tigers	7	7	6	6	26
#25 Aggies	3	0	7	0	10

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
4–1	2014	TAMU, 41–38

Western Carolina

	1	2	3	4	Total
Catamounts	0	14	0	3	17
Aggies	7	14	13	7	41

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
First meeting

Vanderbilt

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	6	10	6	3	25
Commodores	0	0	0	0	0

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
1–0	2013	TAMU 56–24

LSU

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	7	0	0	0	7
Tigers	6	0	7	6	19

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
20–30–3	2014	LSU, 23–17

Louisville

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aggies	7	7	0	7	21
Cardinals	20	0	7	0	27

Overall record	Last meeting	Result
3–0	1994	TAMU 26–10

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	RV	16	17	14	14	9 (1)	9 (1)	15	RV	25	RV	RV	RV	NR	NR
Coaches'	RV	19	18	15	15	11	10	16	RV	24	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
CFP	Not released									19	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	Not released

References

1. "2015 Class Ranking ESPN". ESPN. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
2. "2015 Class - Rivals". Rivals. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
3. "2015 Class Ranking – 247". 247. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
4. "2015 Class Ranking – Scout". Scout. Retrieved February 4, 2015.
5. "2015 Football Schedule Announced" (Press release). Texas A&M University Department of Athletics. October 14, 2014. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
6. "2015 Texas A&M Aggies Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
7. Bowen, Larry (September 13, 2015). "Aggie Defense Grounds Cardinals with Impressive First Half". The Bryan-College Station Eagle. Retrieved October 26, 2015.